Dragline bucket and boom control



April 9 3 J. w. PAGE 2,633,649

DRAGLINE BUCKET AND BOOM conmor.

Filed Feb. 28. 1947 April 7, 1953 J. w. PAGE 2,633,649

DRAGLINE BUCKET AND BOOM CONTROL Filed Feb. 28. 1947 2 SI-IEETS T 2 ll i ll i Patented Apr. 7, 1953 DRAGLINE BUCKET AND BOOM CONTROL John W. Page, Chicago, Ill., assignor to Page Engineering Company, a corporation of Illinois Application February 28, 1947, Serial No. 731,478

example in dragline excavators where large sized V buckets of the order of 25 to 35 cubic yards are being handled, the use of single lines or cables for loading and hoisting requires such large diameter cables (three inches or more in diameter) that the cable becomes unwieldy, and will not bend easily around a relatively small diameter drum or a sheave of ordinary size. In an effort to overcome this difiicultysome dragline excavators have employed two load cables, onabling a cable of about two inch diameter to be used. This has heretofore proved to have many practical disadvantages, however.

Cables inherently have a certain amount of stretch or give, and this varies in accordance with'the length of use of the cable, new cables having a much greater amount of stretch than older ones. When the cable of a twin line excavator breaks and is replaced by a new cable therefor, a great deal of difliculty is experienced in keeping the pull on the two cables properly equalized. Under present conditions the operator must stop excavating and .go through a long and laborious job of disconnecting the ca'bleat one end or the other and shortening it and reconnecting it as necessary, this operation being repeated at relatively frequent intervals until the new cable is broken in. About this time it always seems as though the other cable breaks, and the operator is then going through the same troubles on the other side.

I have devised and am here disclosing and claiming a power actuated arrangement for varying the relative'lengths of the cables which requires no effort by the operator and may be done at any time in a matter of seconds, even while the load is being pulled in. The result is that a new cable can be installed on a twin line excavator and the machine operated continuously without any shutdowns whatsoever for load line adjustment;

Moreover, the finger tip control of the operator over the relative length of' the load cables is of considerable advantage in digging, as during the process of digging in and filling the bucket,-the same can, to some extent, be guided by changing the relative lengths of the load lines to cause the bucket to dig strongly to oneside or the at the control of the operator;

2 Claims. (Cl. 37-116) In addition, I have provided a twin line arrangement for hoisting, with an automatic equalizing arrangement compensating for any differences in the initial connection or stretching of the hoist lines, no control of the operator over the relative length of these lines being provided since there is no need of controlling the direction or character of movement of the bucket during hoisting.

Various other features and advantages of my invention will be apparent from the following specification and the drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view of one form of dragline excavator embodying my inventions; Figure 2 is a fragmentary plan view of the deck of the excavator shown in Figure 1; Figure 3 is a fragmentary enlarged side elevational view of the portion of the excavator shown in Figure 2; Figure 4' is a fragmentary front view, looking from the right of Figure 2; Figure 5 is a back elevational view of a bucket and hoist equalizing arrangement; and Figure 6 is a plan view, with a portion broken away, of the bucket of the excavator shown in Figure'l.

Various types of dragline excavators and the particular buckets which I prefer to use therewith have been shown in a number of my earlier patents, and, therefore, will not be described in detail here. The general structure of the particular excavator illustrated is similar to that shown in my Patent No. 2,255,568; and the bucket is of the type in Reissue Patent No. 21,664, sometimes known as the Page automatic bucket. Since reference may be had to these and others of my earlier patents to supplement the description, the general operation of the particular type of load handling apparatus illustrated here will be only briefly described.

A dragline excavator of the particular type illustrated here is provided with a base or tub Ill having a body ll rotatable thereon on a suitablecircular track 12. A main boom I3 is pivotally mounted at the front of the excavator body and suitable overhead structure .and cables are provided for moving the boom to and holding it at any desired'position, boom elevations being controlled by the rearmost power driven drum 43. Suitable means, in the form of drums power driven by diesel, electric or other motors, and hoist and load lines, are provided to handle the bucket l4, and it is with the provision of a plurality of lines (twin lines are here shown) for hoisting and loading or dragging that we are here concerned. a

Referring more particularly Figures ,2, 3 and 4, the load drum I5 is driven by conventional means (not illustrated) so that rotation thereof causes winding thereon or therefrom of the load lines or cables l6 and 11, control of drum operation being by conventional clutch and brake arrangements more particularly illustrated in other of my patents. In the particular embodiment illustrated the cables l6 and H are connected near the outer'fei'ids 'of the drum -a'ndwound toward the center-thereof. The cable 16- passes over a lower stationary sheave or guide member 18 fixedly mounted on the deck, an upper fixedly mounted sheave or guide member .8 9, and another lower and forward sheave 20,'this"1atteral'so being fixedly mounted, the linethenanoving-to the bucket M, to which it connects "atpnesideby one bridle chain. The other cable H passes over a sheave 2i fixedly mounted on"thedeck"of' the excavator body I I, then over a movablymounted sheave or guide membera22, then down around another lower and forward fixedly mounted sheave 23.v

ns-may-be best-seen inFigure i, the movably mounted sheave 22 is carried by a yoke 24 mounted-entire piston rcdfi connected to a'piston *ZB-in the cylinder :2], the position of the yoke beingstabilized byilever :arms or links 28 and 29 :pivotally connected'toone of 'the front structural members of the body of the excavator.

"Power actuated means is provided for moving the adjustable or movable sheave 22 in a direction substantially entirely'transverse to the normal'line of; pull of theloa'd line H. It will be understood that-this apparatus, or at least the controls therefor, -.-ar e located in the operators cab conveniently at his controL 'althoughthey areshown in Figurefi'inschematic form, They are :here-shownas consisting 70f a special tank til-for oil 101' similar-hydraulic actuating fluid, a power'driven pump 3L and valves '32 and -33 for controlling the admission of fluid to and exhausting it from the vlower part of the cylinderi2'l beneath the piston 26., p v

In installing one orgboth'load' lines, the cables would be so connected as to be substantially uniform in length, when the movable sheave 22 wasat the intermediate ,positionasshown in 'the drawing. Thereaftergat any time it may be desirable togshorten-the line 11 :relative to the line 16, the valve*32 n1ay-be opened to admitfiuid below the piston 26 and cause thepsheave 22 to rise, this 'effectivelyshortening the line I! rela- .tive to 'itsycompanion line. Similarly, if it is desired to lengthen "the line H relative. to the line 16 because of greater stretching of the line 16 error any other reason, the valve 33 may beopened to exhaust-fluidfrom beneath the ,piston 25 and lower the sheave 22 until the desired relationship between the lines is achieved. 7 It will be understood that, if desired, both cables may be provided with movable adjacent guide member arrangements to enable a greater relative changein the length of the, cables.

As will be readily apparent, this convenient @power actuated arrangement for changing the relative :length of thecables without disturbing other connections tothe drum or to the bucket enables equalizing adjustments .to be'made Withoutthe operator leaving the cab, -and while some other operation is being performed if desired. Moreover, in addition to enabling equalization of the cables despite differences stretch, my arrangementetam iuieidpe mr tolhave greater 'c tihtrol of "thebucket diiringdi'gging, as he an to some extent determine the directionof dig porting the bucket for hoisting are rigged in conventional manner and brought together to a 'single'yokem'emberfl, this yoke member in this ;case"be ingpivotally,.connected to the center of the equalizer" beam #0. Differences in the relative length of the hoist cables 35 and 3? will be "compensated for by'this automatic equalizing arrangement, since even if the beam 40 is at an angle in one direction or the other, the bucket, supported from its center, still hoists as though handled by Ia single line. 7

While I have shownand described cent-unembooliments of myinventionfitis to be'und'erstood'that'it is capable of manymodi'fi'cations. Changes, therefore, in the construction and jamrang'eme'nt may be made without departing from the spirit andsco'p'e of the invention asdisclosed in the appended claims.

1. In a dragline'bucket excavator, bucket hauling apparatus of the character described, including: .a pair of cables attached to the bucket, oneat each side thereof; power driven drum means on which'the cables windforsimultaneou'sly moving 1 the cables to move the bucket; fa guide member over which one of the cables passes; a movable mounting for said guide memher, at least 'acomponen't of themovementof said guide member being ina direction transverse to the line of pullof the cable in contact there,- with; and manually controlled power operated means, for moving said guide ,member, to and maintainingit at a 'predetermjinedposit r1 ft'o adjusttlie 'eifective length of the cablepassing ovensaid'guide member. V

2. .In fa .dra gline' bucket excavator, ihauling an}, paratus for handling the bucket,including:: 'a'pair of 'load cables attached to the'bu'c'ket one at each side thereof; a; single 3 driven drum fme'ans'on which both ofthe cables 'fo'rsimultaneousi'y'moving 'the'cable's'to move the bucke pair of; guide members, .one .ofthe cablesp in'g over .each'pf the 'guide. me'mberfs; a m'o'v bile mounting for one of saidguide'membersja'tleast a component of'the movement of said guidem'eim ber'being'in a direction transverse to the linear pull of the cable in contact therewithiand' man- .ually'controlled power operated means formo'ving said 'guid'e'member to and maintaining itfat a 5 predetermined position to adjust the effeci iivev length of the cable 'pa'ssing over the last men'- tioried guide member.

' JOHN W. ends.

sameness-ems v I The following references are of "record in the file of this patent: u e

UNITED STATES PATENTS- 

